Stay Beneath Him (INCOMPLETE) (Levi x Reader Fanfiction)

17: Don't Leave Him

  Sleep evaded you for a majority of the night and you awoke the next morning with the same pestering thoughts that antagonized your mind from yesterday. It was Saturday, the second day of the conference. Your day was sure to be packed with lectures, panels, and whatever else you could find to do on campus. 

  You made it to the hotel diner at a few minutes before 8, passing through the main area and finding a separate room filled with tables and lined with steel, industrial counters that contained cauldrons of food options available for taking. Paradis professors made up a majority of the occupancy, taking up several tables close together while still separated into cliques. After retrieving a plate of whatever looked appetizing, you, at their request, sat with the literature department. Levi wasn't there. 

  "Good morning." You sat between Gunther and Nanaba, filling the last available seat at your circular table. 

  "Good morning." Rico was across from you, next to Flagon and Lynne. You remembered most of the crew from your dinner with them and felt a little honored when they acknowledged and appreciated you. Not all the literature professors were present for the conference, leaving your group a bit smaller than it would have been. 

  "Did you see Levi on your way down?" Nanaba asked, forking a blueberry on her plate.

  "No, I didn't." You unraveled the utensils in your napkin. 

  "I'll check on him before we head to the campus," Rico said. "Did he seem alright last night, (y/n)?" 

  I think you should be asking that to me instead. "I mean, yeah. He's fine." 

  "Okay." 

  "So, you his girlfriend now?" You nearly choked on your food at Flagon's question.

  "Flagon! Be respectful," Lynne chided. 

  "What? We're all wondering." Flagon shrugged innocently. "No need to be all secret about it. Just rip the band-aid off and tell us."

  You finished chewing, thinking of a response. "I'm not. I mean, we're not dating. Nothing like that."

  "Then what is it like?" Flagon leaned back and crossed his arms. 

  You felt the stare of the literature department on you, anxious to understand the relationship between you and their boss. "I'm just his intern," you said. 

  "Yeah, right." Flagon had gone on the offensive. "A regular intern doesn't stay attached to him at the hip, or meet with him privately in a hotel room."

  "Who-"

  "Rico told us. Pretty suspicious, isn't it?" Flagon's attitude was unexpected and his colleagues made no effort to stop it. Besides Lynne's singular remark, it seemed as though they wanted him to push you for answers just to satisfy their own curiosity. 

  "We were just talking. I mean, of course I'm around him a lot. I'm his intern." You sounded like a broken record. "Nothing's going on, if you're wondering. I just, uh, help him with a lot." 

  "Levi hasn't been the same since you showed up," Rico said bluntly. "We just can't figure out if he's better or worse."

  This piqued interest on your end. "Why? What's he like now?" 

  "I don't know how to put it. He's...cautious. Sometimes he's less aggressive, like he's scared of offending us. Other times, he's really defensive, almost unnecessarily hostile." Her description resonated with her colleagues through nods and hums of agreement. 

  "That's strange." You set your fork down. "I didn't realize he changed."

  "You wouldn't have known, no." Rico shook her head. "We're just trying to understand why it happened."